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Leiters Parent No; 75,889, dated March 24, 18683 IMPROVEMENT 1N TELEeRAPH-INSULATORS.

TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN.:

Be it known that I, J. L. FINN, of Elyriu,"in the county of'Lorain, and State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Telegraph-Insulators; and I do hereby decla-re that thefollowing is afull, clear, and exact description thereof, which willenable others skilled in the art to make and use thc same, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings, forming part oithis specification. i

Thisinventiou consists of an improvedtelegraph-insulator and lightning-arrester; and its objects are to provide a more cl'cctual mode of insulating telegraph-wires, and to collect and arrest the free electricity pervadingL thc wires, and convey it haruilessly into the ground. It can also be applied in other eases in'which the presence of free electricity interferes with the use of the olectrometer orgalvanomcter.` In the accompanying drawingsv Figure 1 is a vertical section of my improved insulator, and

Figure 2 is a bottom plan thereof.

The same letters apply to the samo parts in both drawings.

The insulator consists of adome or bell-shaped shell, A, of cast iron, or othorsuitable material, carrying a hollow shank, a, insertedin the arm or bearer X, attached to thetelegraph-pole Y, and in which shank is fitted an insulator, B, of-glass, china, porcelain, or other non-conductingsubstance, glass being preferred. Theishank a is secured in the arm X by one or more pins T passing through the arm and into aslot or groove in the exterior surface of the shank made to receive it, o r it may be secured in any other suitable manner. The arm X is attachedpto the telegraph-pole Y in any suitable manner, so that the mouth of the bell hangs down, to preserve the apparatusfromthc weather, and from watery connection with the earth. An iron fork, C, bearing the telegraph-wire in its prongs e c, hooked for 4that purpose, i's held by its shank, C, in the glass insulater B, and may be secured -with cement, if desired` A toothed conductor, D, made of sheet copper, or other good conducting substance, is secured in place by a screw, E, passing through a slot, F, in the shank or shaft Il of the toot-hed conductor, into the rim or base of the shell A, and is adjusted by means of thc screw E and slot F to within onetiventieth of an inch from the telegraph-wire, and I prefer that it shall approach the wire between the prongs of the iron fork c c. A ground or conducting-wire, K, attached to and electrically ecnnected with the-shaft Hl of the toothed conductor D, is led to the telegraph-pole Y, and thence into the ground. And by this arrangement the free electricity which, duringstorms, or an yelectric condition of the atmosphere, or from any other cause, .muy pervade the wires, often seriously impeding the working of and sometimes destroying the telegraph, n'ill be collected and arrested by the toothed conductor, and'cnrried liarmlessly away.

The results obtained by the eleotropicter and galranometer are often rendered unreliable through the presence of free electricity, ,and my invention can be readilyzadapte'd to rcmove this cause of error.

I do not confine myself 'to the use of any particular form of arrester, but .prefer the form here shown.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

i1. The combination and'arrangement of the bell-shaped shell A, forked shank C, the adjustable toothed conductor D, and conducting-wire K, substantially as described for the purpose specied.

2. Securing the shank a to the bearer X, by means of the'tangential pins T, passing through a groove in the side ofthe said shank, substantially as described for the purpose specified.

J. L. FINN. Witnesses:v

'L R. FINN,

H. W. BLISS. 

